Low
by coolkitten12
Summary: Troy ends his relationship with Gabriella for reasons he thinks are right. Then something happens and it throws Gabi's life into turmoil. Will her friends be able to save her, or will it all be too late?
1. A broken heart

**An:**** Here is the first chapter, I hope you enjoy it! X**

Disclaimer: I don't own High School Musical or "Low" which is by Kelly Clarkson.

* * *

**Chapter 1: A broken heart.  
**

"What?!?" Gabriella was shocked. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She grabbed his hand but he pulled away. "You can't mean that!" She stood up and walked over to him. She was in his room, surrounded by pictures of him playing basket ball, him and his mates, and him and Gabriella over the last year. She had believed they were in love. Clearly she was wrong.

It had been nearly a year since he had asked her out. He did it after the final performance of Tinsel Town.

_Flashback_

_Troy and Gabriella had just left the stage after receiving a standing ovation for their final performance of Tinsel Town. They had sung their hearts out all night, and now they were full of adrenaline. Troy ran up to Gabi, who was being congratulated by Sharpey for a great performance, and grabbed her waist in a tight hug. _

_Gabriella smiled as she felt his arms wrap around her. She hadn't admitted it to anyone, but during all the rehearsals and performances, she was slowly and surely falling in love with none other than Troy Bolton. What she didn't know was that Troy had also fallen in love with her. _

"_Can I speak to you?" he whispered in her ear. He took her hand and led her over to the other side of the room. He took hold of her hands in his, stared into her eyes and spoke. "Gabi," he said, his voice strained, "would you… will you…" he took a gulp before continuing "would you go out with me?" He asked, then looked away from her, preparing himself for the rejection. He was shocked to feel Gabi's soft lips pressed against his cheek. Then her harmonic voice filled his ears, saying the words he had been praying she would say for months._

"_Yes, I'll go out with you." Gabriella whispered in his ear, smiling widely. He spun round to face her._

"_You will?" he asked, shocked. She nodded her head and he then lifted her into the air and spun her round. She giggled. He loved to hear her laugh; it made him feel so happy inside. He placed her back on the ground and smiled at her. _

_End Flashback_

After that day she had fallen in love with him. They had been labelled the IT couple. Everyone thought they would be together forever, get married, have kids and grow old together. She had considered it many times, she thought she and Troy wanted to be together forever, or at least until college. Obviously Troy didn't want it to last that long. He wanted it to last no longer than today. He had just shown her that.

She felt her heart break as she heard his next words.

"I'm sorry Gabi, I just think it would be better if we called time on our relationship, at least for now." He explained calmly, his back to Gabriella.

"But why now? What changed Troy? I thought you loved me!" Tears were forming in the brunettes glistening brown eyes. No response came from the blond stood in front of her. She walked away as the tears flowed down her soft cheeks.

Troy realised he had to tell her the real reason, or he would lose her for good.

"Gabi, I'm sorry it's just…" he trailed off as he turned around to see his bedroom door close. He had missed his chance. He collapsed on his bed, mentally yelling at himself. He closed his eyes and started to cry for the first time in years.

* * *

Gabriella ran down the stairs of the Bolton household, and was rushing towards the front door when she bumped into Louise, Troy's older sister.

"Gabi, what's wrong?" Louise asked concerned. She had seen Gabriella as a little sister since she and Troy had started dating.

"It's over!" Gabi stated before rushing through the front door. Louise was left with anger flowing though her.

"TROY!!!" She yelled up the stairs, before following her words to her brother's bedroom and slamming the door open.

Gabriella wandered down the silent streets in the twilight. It was a summer night, the air was warm, yet Gabriella was shivering. The tears had subsided, yet inside Gabriella was still being torn apart. She started to sing. It was her way to release her sadness.

_Everybody's talking  
But they don't say a thing  
They look at me with sad eyes  
But I don't want the sympathy  
Its cool you didn't want me  
Sometimes you can't go back  
But why'd you have to go and make a mess like that  
Well I just have to say  
Before I let go_

_Have you ever been low?  
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so?  
When the truth came out  
Were you the last to know?  
Were you left out in the cold?  
Cos what you did was low  
_

The street was eerily silent. The sun had set, leaving Gabi alone in the darkness.

_  
No I don't need your number  
There's nothing left to say  
Except I never thought it'd hurt this much to be saved  
My friends are outside waiting  
I've gotta go_

_Have you ever been low?  
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so?  
When the truth came out  
Were you the last to know?  
Were you left out in the cold?_

There was a rustle. Gabi stopped, scared.

"Hello?" She called. Her voice echoed around. She shrugged and carried on singing, assuming it was just the wind.

_  
What you did was low  
What you did was low (low)_

_I walk out of this darkness  
With no sense of regret  
_

"Oh do you?" A deep manly voice said into her ear. She froze. She knew she should run, but her feet seemed to be stuck in place. He slipped a hand across her mouth, pulling her close to him. "Don't make a sound" he instructed her before dragging her into a side alley. She felt fear running through her. She struggled, trying to release herself from his grasp, but the mystery man just held her tighter the more she struggled. He got angry as she continued to struggle. He slammed her against a cold brick wall.

"Hello there pretty," he said before smashing his lips against hers. Gabi tried to make out his face but it was too dark.

As he removed his lips Gabi took it as a chance to release a scream. Bad move. He slapped her and grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall.

"Be a good girl!" he whispered to her menacingly before proceeding to unbutton her shirt slowly while kissing her neck.

She bit her lip to stop herself from making any sound as he placed kisses down her chest once he had fully removed her shirt. He moved his hand towards the back of her bra. She tried to escape once more, panicking about what was going to happen next, but he slammed her against the wall again, more viciously than the last time. Her head collided with the cold bricks. She yelped in pain.

She was fighting with all her strength to stay conscious as he started working his way towards her hips. The blackness was starting to force its way forward as she felt the button on her jeans pop open.

Tears leaked from Gabriella's eyes. She felt him push his body against hers. She couldn't withstand the pain anymore and let the darkness consume her and she felt the man remove her from the wall and the hard concrete floor connected with her back.

* * *

"How could you be such an idiot?" Louise yelled at her younger brother who was lying face down on his bed. "Well?" she demanded impatiently.

"I didn't want us to end up like mom and dad." Troy explained quietly into the pillow below him. He felt sick with the guilt of hurting Gabriella so much.

"What?" Louise asked more calmly, feeling sympathy for her brother. She sat down on the edge of his bed. Troy turned over and stared at his bedroom ceiling, examining it closely before explaining.

"I love Gabriella with all my heart and soul, more than anything else in this world. But I don't want us to end up like mom and dad have." A clear film of tears began forming once again in his eyes.

"Oh Troy!" Louise exclaimed. She couldn't believe all of this was because of what they had been told last night. She leaned over and gave her brother a caring hug before leaving him alone. She knew she had to call someone.

* * *

"Hey Chad, its Louise." Chad was immediately worried by the tone his best friend's sister's voice.

"What's Troy done this time?" He enquired, half jokingly, half serious. He heard Louise take a deep breath and realised it was worse than he thought.

The rain was pouring down when Gabriella regained consciousness a while later. The mystery man was no where to be seen. He had left Gabriella as she was before she blacked out. Her shirt was lying on the ground, soaked through. She took a deep, shaky breath, and then nervously stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes and collecting her clothes. She walked back home, filled with misery and shame.

"I'll be over tomorrow morning, first thing. I didn't think he would react this badly, and definitely not in that way." Chad placed the phone back on the receiver then sat on his couch, a confused expression on his face.

* * *

**AN:**** What did you think? Please review! x**


	2. Disturbed Dreams

**AN: Here is your next chapter. Enjoy!**

Tiana, Gabriella's mother, was sat in the kitchen, a steaming cup of coffee between her hands, when she heard the front door open. As she walked into the hallway she found herself facing her seventeen year old daughter who was soaked from head to toe, sobs wracking her body.

Tiana rushed towards Gabriella, embracing her in a tight hug and asking what was wrong. Gabriella replied quietly;

"He dumped me". Her tone was flat; the emotion had been drained from her. She disentangled herself from her mother's arms and ran up the stairs and into her bedroom, locking the door behind her. She flung herself onto her bed and let the tears flow once more.

"I hate him!" she screamed into the empty room, referring not only to Troy but also to her attacker. On her walk home afterwards she had promised to herself that she would never tell anyone about what happened. Never. She was too ashamed.

Gabriella lay staring at her ceiling. Her hand subconsciously moved to her neck, where a thin piece of silver lay gently. She unclipped it and held it in her hands, staring at it.

It had been the most amazing necklace she had ever seen. It had been her 17th birthday present from Troy, which he had presented her with at her birthday party, the same night he promised he would never break her heart. She had believed him and been so happy.

Hanging from the sterling silver chain was a small decoration. It read "T+G4ever". In the last few months it had made her smile, no matter what was happening in her life. Now it just made her feel sick. Reading those words just caused her to question it all more and more. Why? What had made him change his mind?

As the questions flowed through her mind she gripped the necklace harder and harder, her knuckles slowly turning white. As her mind began to scream from all the pain she felt she released the necklace, and heard it crash against her bedroom wall seconds later, the little decoration smashing so it no longer read what it had moments before.

She turned over and closed her eyes tight shut, images flashed through her mind of everything that had happened that night, and though she willed it not to, sleep slowly overcame her.

* * *

Troy looked at the clock on his bedside table. 2am it read in luminous green digital letters. Troy groaned, frustrated by the fact that he couldn't sleep. His mind kept questioning if he had done the right thing. He knew his reasons and thought that in the circumstances he made the right choice, but he couldn't make himself 100 certain. Every time he closed his eyes, trying to get to sleep, the look of sadness and hurt on Gabriella's face flashed through his mind's eye. He had never meant to hurt her, what he had done tonight was him trying to prevent her from getting hurt. He should have explained everything to her, and then she would have seen that it was for the best. He closed his eyes again, begging his mind to let him sleep.

* * *

_"Be a good girl!" he whispered to her menacingly._

Gabriella woke in a cold sweat, her heart pounding. She had been fast asleep, images and sounds from the attack playing repeatedly in her mind. She had been feeling the pain, the fear, everything, all over again.

"I'm never going to sleep, ever again" Gabriella said to herself, becoming hysterical. She knew it was not true, she would eventually be forced to sleep by sheer tiredness, but she would fight against it with all her strength, she never wanted to see those images again.

She got out of bed and went into her bathroom, having a shower, letting the warm drops of water run down her back, washing away the dirt which she felt covered her body.

* * *

"Troy!" He bolted awake when he heard his best friend of nearly his whole life yelling his name through his bedroom door. He wondered at first why Chad was there, but then memories of last night came flooding back to him and he realised his sister must have called.

"Troy, open the door, we need to talk!" From his tone Troy could tell that Chad knew about him and Gabriella. He sighed, pulled himself out of bed and wrenched his door open.

Chad stood in the hallway waiting patiently. When the door in front of him finally opened he was greeted by a very tired and miserable looking Troy.

"What do you want Chad?" Troy snarled before turning back into his room. Chad would normally have taken offence at Troy's tone, but he let it slide, knowing now was not the time for an argument.

The two seventeen year olds sat on Troy's bed, neither looking at the other. Silence engulfed them for a moment before Chad interrupted it.

"Why did you do it man?" Chad asked. He was really worried. Only last week Troy has been saying how much he loved Gabi. How he wanted to marry her and spend the rest of their lives together. "What changed?"

Troy turned away from Chad. He had never cried in front of his best friend, not since they met in kindergarten, he was not about to break that record.

Chad saw the water in Troy's eyes. He knew then that it was serious, and that Troy was regretting his decision. He placed a hand on Troy's shoulder, trying to be comforting. He was never good in these situations.

Troy took a depth breath, and then tried to explain as much as he could to Chad, who had heard it all before but listened patiently, knowing Troy was trying to get it all straight in his mind.

A few days ago Troy had been sitting in his room, thinking about how much he loved Gabi…

_Flashback_

_Troy sat staring at a photo of him and Gabi from the day of the triple win. There was a strong knock at the door and his dad walked in, a serious look on his face. Troy placed the photo back on his bedside table and turned to face his father._

_"Dad, what's wrong?" Troy's voice was quiet and you could hear the worry in it. _

_Jack Bolton sat down beside Troy and explain, in a serious and sombre tone, exactly what was going on._

_"I need to tell you something Troy, it's about your mother and me." Troy gulped, worried about what his father was about to tell him and how it would affect his life. "I'm sorry son, but your mom and I have decided that we can't live like this anymore." Jack looked down before finishing, "We're getting a divorce". _

_Troy's parents had been married for nearly 30 years, they had been high school sweethearts, just like Troy and Gabriella. When he heard his father say those words and saw the misery in his eyes, Troy started to worry. He didn't want him and Gabriella to end up like his parents. He couldn't live with the thought that he might one day hurt Gabi the way his parents were hurting each other. _

_End flashback_

"You see, I thought I was doing the right thing." Troy finished explaining. He knew he hadn't told Chad everything, but he wasn't ready to accept the other affects the divorce would have on him.

Chad couldn't believe it. He had known about the Bolton's divorce, but he had never expected Troy to react so badly, Troy was always the level headed one of the group.

"Why don't you try and get her back? Explain everything to her." Chad was trying to think of ways to make everything better. Troy turned towards him and Chad saw the misery in Troy's eyes.

"You didn't see her reaction Chad. She looked so crushed, so angry. I don't think she will ever talk to me again." The thought had suddenly dawned on Troy. He had not only lots his girlfriend, but also one of his closest friends.

Chad sighed. He placed Troy's phone in his best friends hand and said, more as an order rather than a suggestion;

"Call her. Things can't get worse than they already are." Then he stood and walked from the room, giving Troy some peace.

* * *

Gabriella sat in her bedroom, her red, puffy eyes beginning the droop with exhaustion from the lack of sleep that night. She was trying to keep herself awake, but was failing slowly. Her last defence broke down and her eyes closed, her body slowly fell back against the bed. The pain which had been numbed all through the night was gradually seeping over her body.

* * *

Troy stared at the phone for a while before dialling Gabi's number, no idea what he was going to say. He hoped she would pick up, yet something in him told him that she wouldn't, that he had blown everything.

* * *

"The start of something new", Gabriella's previous favourite song before last night, started to play on her mobile but she was too deeply sleeping to hear it.

* * *

It rang and rang and eventually went to answer phone. Troy hung up, he couldn't leave a message. It was over, and he had to accept it.

Chad didn't hear any talking so he walked back into the room. Troy was on his bed, staring at the ceiling, tears falling down his cheeks. Chad could guess what had happened.

"Give her time, she'll come round soon, you'll see." Troy gave a weak smile, but he knew he didn't have "time". The two of them sat in Troy's room for a while, talking about this and that. Eventually the time came for Chad to leave and Troy was left alone, thinking about everything that had happened.

**A/N: Hey, I thought this was the best place to stop. And sorry about all the lines. I would really appreciate some reviews; I need something to keep me going in this extra period of time that we non-Americans have to wait to see HSM2! Thanks! x**


	3. Goodbye for now

**A/N: On with the next chapter!**

The next day, Gabriella was standing at her locker, the door to it reverted to plain red, she had torn down and ripped up all of the pictures of Troy that she had stuck to it. She stood staring at the back of her locker, trying to stop the tears falling from her eyes, when she heard Taylor's cheerful voice behind her.

"Hey Gabi! How was your weekend? Listen, the next scholastic decathlon starts in a few weeks and the team are getting together to practise after school, you'll be there right?" Gabi took a deep breath. All she wanted was to be alone. She hadn't wanted to come into school that day, but her mother had forced her, thinking it was only because she wanted to avoid Troy.

"No Taylor, I won't" She said in a sniping tone, before slamming her locker shut and storming off. She knew it wasn't Taylor's fault, she didn't know why she had taken it out on her, she was just there, someone to release her emotions on.

Taylor was left standing alone and confused in the middle of the hallway. She had never seen Gabriella looking so upset. She wanted to know what was wrong, and she knew where she would find the answer. She turned around and walked towards Chad's locker, where she knew she would meet her boyfriend and his best friend.

Gabriella rushed into a cubicle and sat down, taking slow, shaking breaths. She couldn't cope anymore. Where ever she went she was scared, worried her attacker would be there and hurt her again. She couldn't trust anyone or be around anybody. She opened her bag and searched through it hurriedly.

Chad and Troy rounded the corner by Chad's locker. The look on Troy's face almost confirmed what Taylor was thinking. But she needed to hear him say it.

Chad saw his girlfriend of a year and a half and greeted her with a hug and a short, sweet kiss. Troy turned away; he was still upset about him and Gabriella. He was looking though his locker next to Chad's for his books for first period when he heard Taylor ask him a question which made him want to cry.

"Troy, do you know what's wrong with Gabi?" from that question Troy knew Gabi was still upset. He felt dreadful that he had hurt her so much. He gave Chad a pleading look.

Chad took Taylor by the hand and led her a little way down the hallway. He glanced back to see Troy slam his locker shut and walk solemnly towards home room. Then he saw Taylor giving him a confused look and slowly explained everything that had happened from the news that Troy's parents were getting a divorce, to Troy dumping Gabi.

"But why would he assume the same thing would happen to him a Gabi? You don't think his dad told him something else do you? Like…" Taylor trailed off; from the look on Chad's face Taylor could tell that he was thinking exactly the same thing she was. But why would Troy not have told them? Chad said he would ask him later that day, but he dreaded what he would be told.

Gabi sat in the cubicle; her eyes closed tight, her breathing shallow. The bell for homeroom sounded, but she ignored it. She couldn't bear to face the others. She knew it was stupid but she couldn't help the feelings she was experiencing. She winced at the flash of pain, and then smiled as she felt the relief. She had once vowed she would never resort this, but it was helping her to cope; now she couldn't believe she had never tried it. She had contemplated it the year her father died, when she was barely trying to live, but she had never had the nerve to go through with it.

She had started the night of the attack, when she had been trying to keep herself awake. She had been searching through her cupboard looking for something to take the pain and the sadness away when her hand landed on it. It seemed to say to her 'use me'. She hadn't been sure at first but something just made her start. She hadn't been able to stop since, resorting to it whenever the pain inside her became to much to bare.

Taylor glanced around the classroom. Gabriella was nowhere to be seen. Taylor was worried. She leaned over to Sharpay, who she was now close friends with, and asked her if she had seen Gabi since arriving in school. Sharpay replied that she had seen her heading into the girl's loos a few minutes before.

Miss Darbus dismissed the class and Sharpay and Taylor ran towards the girl's loos, their hearts racing. Taylor had explained what had happened and Sharpay had made a suggestion that caused their blood to turn cold.

The bell signalling the end of homeroom rang through Gabriella's head as she ran her hand under the stream of water, turning the cream basin blood red. Seeing the colour Gabriella gave a small, satisfied smile. She knew it was wrong, but it made her feel so much better.

She was cleaning the small blood stained piece of metal when the bathroom door was flung open. Gabi rapidly slipped the metal implement in her handbag and placed a forced smile on her face as Sharpay and Taylor entered the room.

"Hey Gabi, are you alright?" Sharpay used her acting skills to come across as calm, while inside she was worried about her friend.

"Yeah, erm, I've got to get to chemistry, see you later" Gabi replied before rushing off, leaving the two other girls stood there looking worried.

No one saw Gabi for the rest of the day unless they had lessons with her, and even then she would turn away and ignore them. The gang were becoming very worried about her and Troy felt so guilty it was making him feel sick. 'If I had just fully explained the situation', he thought, 'maybe she wouldn't be taking everything this badly, maybe we could have worked out some way of making it work.' Troy still loved Gabriella with all of his heart and he knew he would never stop. He tried to talk to her, to explain everything, but whenever he came anywhere near her she just ran away from him.

Chad was walking home with Troy at the end of the day, trying to think of how to ask if his and Taylor's suspicions were correct when Troy's voice cut in.

"I wasn't totally honest with you." Troy said with a sigh. He had to tell someone the full extent to which his parents divorce was going to affect his life.

Chad stopped walking, and looked at his best friend, scared that Troy was about to tell him something that would change everything.

"My dad is moving away, he's got a job at a school in Chicago. He's asked me to go with him and, I said I would." Chad gasped, he was going to loose his best friend of 17 years. Tears were forming in his eyes but he blinked them away.

"When? When are you leaving?" Chad asked quietly. Troy looked at his best friend with a sad face.

"This weekend" Troy replied, and then turned away, unable to face Chad any longer.

Chad was shocked. He had one week left before he would loose one of the people he cared for the most. He put a hand on Troy's shoulder and said reassuringly;

"It'll be okay man, we'll stay in touch." Chad knew it wouldn't be that simple, but he didn't want to face that thought.

Gabriella was leaving school, having successfully avoided everyone for the rest of the day, when she heard Sharpay call her name then run up to her in clattering heels.

"Hey! I haven't seen much of you today! Want to walk home together?" Gabi knew Sharpay was just trying to be kind, but something inside her just snapped.

"No Sharpay I don't! Leave me the hell alone!" and with that Gabi stormed off, shaking with misery.

Sharpay stood at the entrance, her mouth open wide, tears running down her cheeks. She knew Gabi was hurting, but there was no need for her to act like that. Troy Bolton was just a guy!

Ryan had seen what had happened while getting into his car. He rushed to his sister's side, enveloping her in a hug and feeling his sisters body shake with sobs.

Over the next few days Gabi withdrew completely from the gang, who were left confused as to what they had done.

On Troy's last day at East high he searched the school trying to find her. He knew he had hurt her but he didn't want to leave things like this. He looked everywhere but never found her.

As he said his final guys he handed Ryan a note, instructing him to give it Gabi if he got the chance. He also gave Kelsi a sheet of paper with a song written on it;

"If things don't get better between you guy's and Gabi by the talent show, form a band as a group and play this song for her. It holds my feelings and apologies and I want her to hear it." Troy instructed them. They all nodded showing they understood. Then he shared a final group hug with his friends and got into the waiting car. He turned and waved one last time. With that, Troy was gone.

The gang stood outside the school by the statue for a short while after that, in a stunned silence. Kelsi was reading the lyrics and she was amazed, they were so good. She was already forming a tune in her head. She could tell Troy had spent most of the week trying to get the song right and she could see he had poured all of his emotion into it.

They shortly all said their goodbyes and walked home, trying to deal with the loss of not one, but two friends in the space of a week. A lot can change in a short space of time.

**A/N: Well there you go guys, quite a sad chapter. There is more to come so I hope you keep reading. A few reviews would be great! I also just want to say congratulations to anyone who got their GCSE results yesterday and were happy with what they got, I was so glad when I got mine! Thank you all. x**


	4. A friend in need

**Disclaimer: I don't own high school musical; I haven't even seen HSM2 yet! Only 3 weeks to wait!**

Weeks had passed since the infamous Troy Bolton had left East High and quite a lot had happened in his absence.

The basketball team had been left with neither a coach nor a captain, so Chad had taken charge for the two weeks it had taken for the new coach to arrive. He had made them do the drills coach Bolton always had them run, told them that despite the lack of coach they still had to come to practise everyday. If it hadn't been for him the basketball team would be very far behind schedule and not ready for the upcoming games. It was obvious then that, when the new coach finally arrived, Chad was to become team captain. Everyone had congratulated him and he had been so pleased to be stepping into his best friend's shoes. Now he was nervous. His first game in charge was in less than a week. It would be his chance to prove himself. College scouts were going to be at the game and he really wanted the chance to get a basketball scholarship.

Kelsi was working on the song Troy had left in her charge. She wanted it to be perfect for their performance at the end of term talent show, which was in just over a month. They still had to decide which one of them was going to perform it but they had plenty of time, and Kelsi had an idea.

Gabriella hadn't returned to herself or to the gang as many everyone had thought she would once Troy left. She kept a large distance between herself and everyone else around. No one knew why, people just assumed it was because of her break up with Troy, news of which had quickly spread round the school. When she wasn't in lessons Gabriella would sit in her secret hiding place, the rooftop garden on which she had shared many memories with Troy. This particular lunch she was remember the time she realised she liked Troy as more than a friend.

_Flashback_

_It was a week after the triple win. She and Troy had been getting closer and closer but had never found themselves in the same position as they did at the end of the basketball match before Chad interrupted. Gabriella felt she knew almost everything there was to know about him. They were sat in their secret spot, a batch of Zeke's cookies lying between them. Zeke was an amazing chef and everyone loved his food so he would bring odd treats to school a few times a week. Troy was looking out over the horizon, deep in thought, when he felt a small piece of chocolate chip cookie collide with his face. He turned to see Gabriella with a shy smile on her face. He could tell she was trying her best not to laugh. He slowly leaned forward and couldn't help but smirk when her smile turned to a worried frown._

_"Troy… what are you doing? Troy, stop." Her voice was nervous but there was a smile in it. He lunged at her and started frantically tickling her. He always did this as a sort of play punishment. Her giggles made him smile and he tickled her harder. She tried to wriggle away from him, her laughter becoming manic. "Stop!!!" she squealed as her breathing was becoming short gasps. He finally stopped; he was leaning over her, his brown hair dangling into his eyes, his breathing rough. He stared into her eyes. The look he had in them and the intensity of their deep ocean blue made her heart melt. She knew then that she wanted something more. _

_End Flashback_

Gabriella sighed as she stared out into the distance. She missed the times when she could just relax and be herself. Have some fun. Laugh. She hadn't laughed since Troy told her it was over. She hadn't felt safe. If someone tried to tickle her now she would scream, not from happiness but from fear. She was never fully calm; always worried someone was watching her, that something would happen. The slightest noise could set her heart racing.

The gang were sat around their usual table, discussing their plans for that weekend. Kelsi spoke up, finally thinking it was time they worked on how they were going to perform Troy's song.

"Shar, where's Ryan?" Kelsi asked, she wanted everyone together when she explained her idea, though she expected that the Evans twins had their own plan for the show.

"He's talking to Miss Darbus about the talent show. He's decided he doesn't want to perform this year." There were shocked gasps at this statement from everyone who had heard. Sharpay let out a giggle at their reaction before continuing, "He wants to be the MC instead, you know the guy who introduces all the acts. God only knows why." The gang looked confused; they had never known Sharpay to be so casual about her brother saying he didn't want to perform. Sharpay seemed to understand what the looks were about for she explained, "I'm fine with it, I wanted to do a solo song this year anyway, I've been practising for a few months now." The gang nodded and Kelsi went on to explain her idea. Taylor, Chad, Jason and Zeke agreed to meet her at her house on Saturday to set the plan in motion.

"What a wonderful idea Ryan! But what about your sister, are you deserting her?" Miss Darbus had taken Ryan's announcement of wanting to be an MC surprisingly better than he had expected she would, but as usual, Sharpay was the one she thought about.

"She wants to go solo this year, so it seems like the perfect opportunity" Ryan said, a note of pride in his voice. He had felt for a while that he was holding her back, purely because he didn't really want to be a song and dance man, he wanted to be an actor, not a musician.

"Well then I think it is a fantastic idea! Bravo!" Miss Darbus exclaimed before flouncing away, leaving a strong whiff of perfume behind her. Ryan sat down on the edge of the stage. He was happy, he had finally taken a chance and it had paid of, it had been much easier than he thought it would. He remembered how shocked he had been by Sharpay's reaction when he told her his plan last night.

_Flashback_

_Ryan stood outside his sister's room staring at the shiny golden plaque attached to the door which read Sharpay's name on, trying to work up the courage to knock. He had been planning to tell her for the last few weeks, but hadn't yet because he was dreading her reaction. He knew she had big plans for them in this year's talent show but he had finally decided to do what he wanted to do. Sharpay would be fine on her own, probably better than she was with him._

_He lifted his hand, taking a cleansing breath as he would before a performance, and went to knock. Suddenly, before his hand made contact with the wood, the door in front of him was pulled open and he found himself staring at a shocked looking green creature._

_They both released screams of fright, Ryan would claim his was manlier, but in truth it echoed his sisters almost exactly. _

_"What are you doing stood outside my door? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" Sharpay yelled once they had both calmed down slightly. Ryan gulped, trying to find his voice. In all honesty his sister could terrify him sometimes._

_"I wanted to talk to you about the talent show." He managed to say eventually, "I know that normally we do a duet but I was thinking, I'd quite like to do something different this year." Sharpay looked confused and signalled for him to explain, "I'd like to be the MC this year instead of actually performing, you know, the guy who presents the show, but that would mean you would have to go solo and I totally understand if…" Before he could finish he was cut off. Sharpay had flung her arms around him and was squeezing him to death in what he assumed was meant to be an agreeing hug._

_"That's fantastic Ryan!" Sharpay squealed. Ryan was stunned; he had not expected to get her agreement that easily. Noticing the look on his face Sharpay giggled then continued, "I was going to come and talk to you about that later. There's this song I've been practising for a while now, and it's kind of a one person only song. I was going to come and ask you if you wouldn't mind me deserting you, but I hadn't said anything before because I didn't want to upset you!" Ryan sighed with relief, and then together they laughed at the situation._

_End Flashback_

Ryan remained in the drama room for most of lunch. Normally he would have gone and joined the gang but for once he didn't feel like going and sitting where he felt like the odd one out.

Gabriella stared out into the distance. The peace surrounding her was calming and for the first time in weeks she felt relaxed. She wanted to hide up there on the rooftop forever and never have to leave, never have to see or speak to anyone ever again.

A crash disturbed her peace and made Gabriella jump. Fear started flowing through her as she leapt from the bench she was sitting on and hid in on of the corners. She was breathing heavily and staring at the ground when she heard an unfamiliar voice apologise. She lifted her head to see who it was.

"Are you alright?" The stranger asked. He had mid length blonde hair and green eyes which were currently full of concern. He moved toward Gabriella but stopped abruptly when he heard her whimper in reaction.

Gabriella knew she was over reacting. She could tell from the look in the guy's eyes that he wouldn't try to hurt her. She closed her eyes and mentally yelled at her self for the state that she was in. She heard the guy sigh and start to walk away. She hurriedly stood up.

"Please don't leave" she cried. The words had left her mouth before she had a chance to stop them. Something about the guy stood in front of her told her that she needed him. She took a seat back on the bench and looked at the guy, pleading with her eyes for him to stay with her. A small smile formed on her lips when she saw him turn back round and walk to the bench, before taking a seat on the edge.

"I'm sorry if I scared you by coming up here, I'm new and was just exploring." The guy had a soft voice which made Gabriella feel relaxed. He held out his hand which Gabriella shook as he introduced himself, "I'm Christian, I just moved here last weekend." Gabriella smiled.

"Gabriella" she said smiling. They sat together in a companionable silence for a while just staring into the distance.

"What were you doing up here anyway?" Christian asked after a while. He looked at the brunette sat beside him. He could see in her hazel eyes that something had happened to her that had scared her.

"I was just getting away from everything." She stated. She was going to leave it at that but for some reason she found herself continuing, telling Christian everything that had happened in the last few weeks, including the raping and how she had been self harming. He never interrupted her once, just listened with an understanding look on her self. He never pushed her for information, just listened to what she had to say.

"Gabriella, that is so sad, I understand what you're going through. Please make me a promise, will you at least try to stop self harming. I know it seems hard, but you can do it." She looked at him, wondering how he could possibly understand what she was going through. He saw this and sighed before slowly lifting one of his shirt sleeves. Gabriella gasped in shock. All along his arm were fading scars of where he too had self harmed. Tears flooded to her eyes and he brought her into a hug, whispering to her that everything would be alright; she just had to try to stop. She nodded into his chest. She decided then that she would try to break the habit.

**A/n: Well there you go the next chapter. I wasn't so pleased with this chapter; if anyone has any advice on how to improve, it would be greatly appreciated! X**


	5. How things change

**A/N: It's been ages since I've been on here but I just found this next chapter on my laptop and thought I'd upload it. It is pretty short, but I will see if I have time to write some more, if people are still interested.**

Ryan sat on the edge of the stage thinking. Last summer everything had ended with things looking up. Sharpay thought about what she did and realised it was not fair. She changed, they all were as one. Ryan remembered the romance that had started from that summer. Him and Martha Cox had become really close during their rehearsals for the talent show, and on the last day at Lava Springs he had finally gotten the courage to ask her out. They had dated for nearly two months, making it Ryan's longest relationship. They only ended it because they had to. Martha's family were having to move to New York to take care of their granddad and the young couple knew they wouldn't be able to sustain a long distance relationship. It had been a painful goodbye. They had kept in touch slightly, talking through their instant messenger, but more recently they had both been too busy. Ryan missed Martha, she was so nice to him and he could tell her anything. He had felt more lost without her than ever due to all the happenings of the past few months. He needed her to talk to, have her tell him everything and everyone would be alright at the end of this, but he had a strong feeling that was not true. He sighed as he heard the bell go, signalling the end of lunch. He walked down the steps of the stage, his bag slung over his shoulder. He couldn't believe this was the last term of the year, the gangs last term in school, supposedly the best time of their lives. Yet it was turning out the worst. Everything was falling apart and no one was ding anything to solve it. He pushed the auditorium door open, but allowed it to fall closed again as he heard his phone go off, signalling that he had received a new text. He flipped the phone open and carefully read the text. He smiled. Martha always knew how to do that.

Gabriella and Christian stood at the top of the stairs, sharing a hug which told both of them that they would be there for each other, no matter what happened. When they released each other and walked down the stairs Gabi gave a small smile. She had spent the last few months in fear. She could tell that today was the start of a change. Christian walked with her to her homeroom, promising to meet her at the end of the day. He kissed her softly on the cheek before turning and walking away. Gabi smiled, blush creeping across her face. She walked into the homeroom and took her seat. She looked at Ryan and saw him giving her an encouraging smile. Ryan was the only person Gabi had spoken to of all her old friends. They had drama lessons together and would often talk. Ryan had once asked her what was wrong, but she couldn't tell him, and after that he never asked again, they just kept it casual, never talking about Troy or any of the others. During one of these lessons Ryan had given Gabi a piece of paper and told her that Troy had left it with him on his last day at East High. Gabi had taken it, but never read it. There had been times when she just held the folded paper in her hands and stared at it, but she could never persuade herself to open it and read what Troy had to stay.

Two weeks past and Gabriella spent most of her time with Christian. They spoke about many things but Gabi never got the courage to ask him why he had turned to self harm himself. She had told him all about that night, and he had listened and been sympathetic. He had never been judgemental, just understanding.

The gang sat in the auditorium, discussing the talent show. They had worked for the last fortnight as much as they could. They had decided which of them would perform it. Kelsi had played them the song and they had all been stunned by how Troy's lyrics with Kelsi's music showed all of their feelings about everything that had happened. Now they just hoped that Gabi would come to the show. Jason said he had a plan, and for once they had trusted him. He had spoken to Christian, who he had come to know through his design technology lessons and who he knew had become very close to Gabriella, and had asked him to make sure she came. Christian said he would de everything he could.


End file.
